28 July 2008

FLIP Video – a gem of a tool for online communications

I’ve been searching for some time to find a way to create short videos for my online communications at a price I could afford. Thanks to last week’s edition of The Gadget Show, I found what I was looking for…and it was love at first sight!

The Flip Ultra Video is a small video camera, about the size of a thick mobile phone. As well as coming in

Flip Ultra Video family

several cool colours, it is capable of recording up to 60 minutes in mpeg4. It has a 2x zoom and can record sound, effective up to 12 feet away. Loaded within the camera is all the software you need to download onto your PC, edit videos, add music and upload to the web!

Connecting to your PC is a doddle, as the FLIP in its name refers to the flip out USB connector, again, within the camera. It is a thing of beauty, a really well designed piece of kit. It includes a standard tripod mount in the base, which, having experiemented, makes it ideal for recording “talking head” shots.

I used it at a Baptism in a poorly lit church over the weekend and, despite being slightly grainy, the picture was quite acceptable. In good lighting conditions, the picture is excellent for such a small device. It’s size makes it ideal for carrying in your pocket, laptop bag or handbag, making it possible to record anywhere and in most conditions.

So what is such an amazing piece of kit going to set you back? Well, I got mine through Amazon for just £82. Yes, you read that correctly, £82! (I think I was one of the lucky few, as it’s gone up slightly since then)

So watch our Hollywood, I’m a comin’! (Well, maybe U Tube…)

Oh, and if you’re wondering what it can produce, here’s my first feeble attempt at playing actor/director in my first advertorial epic…

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